ANTONIO CASANOVA Y ESTORACH (Tortosa, Tarragona, 1847 - Paris, 1896)."Temptation".Oil on canvas.

ANTONIO CASANOVA Y ESTORACH (Tortosa, Tarragona, 1847 - Paris, 1896).
"Temptation".
Oil on canvas.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Label of the Sala Gaspar, Barcelona, on the back.
Work verified by Aleix Roig, expert in the work of Casanova and Estorach.
Good state of preservation. Frame with some damage.
Measurements: 92 x 72 cm; 107 x 89 cm (frame).
In this canvas, we can clearly appreciate the preciosist style that Casanova and Estorach cultivated. Underneath the swift and rapid brushstrokes with broken touches that give the image an intuitive and spontaneous aspect, there is a patient and polished work, based on superimposed layers, thanks to which the expressions seem to come to life. See here the two friars, the priceless mischievousness of their mimicry: one looks sideways, almost squinting, at the young girl; the other, with his lips tight and his hand around his chin as if he were meditating, also seems to be ogling the woman, who for her part does not notice anything, or pretends not to notice. Because, in the end, everything is a game of simulations in this brilliant painting, splendid in theme and technique. In fact, the scenes of monks, cardinals and other ecclesiastics, enjoying a comfortable life or delighting in the contemplation of the other sex, were this painter's favourites. Casanova i Estorach drew formally on Baroque sources, particularly the naturalism of the portraits of Velázquez, Frans Hals and Rembrandt.
A painter of Romantic genre painting, Antonio Casanova i Estorach began his training in the studio of José Planella and at the La Lonja School in Barcelona. At the latter he was a pupil of Claudio Lorenzale, Pablo Milá Fontanals and Ramón Martí Alsina. He spent a year in Madrid, where he completed his studies at the San Fernando School of Fine Arts as a pupil of Federico de Madrazo and Carlos Luis Ribera. He also took advantage of his stay in the capital to make numerous copies for the Prado Museum. In 1870 the Diputació de Barcelona awarded him a grant to further his studies in Rome, where Casanova i Estorach stayed for two years. On his return to Spain the painter abandoned history painting and focused on the orientalist and genre themes he had discovered in the Italian capital, which soon became his speciality. Within his production of this type, he achieved great fame with his satirical, humorous or simply costumbrist depictions of ecclesiastical themes. In 1875 he went to Paris, where he settled permanently until his death. Throughout his career Casanova y Estorach repeatedly took part in the National Fine Arts Exhibitions in Madrid and won two second-class medals in 1883 and 1887. He also took part in the Paris Universal Exhibitions of 1878 and 1889, winning a third medal at the latter. After an initial period devoted to history painting, Casanova i Estorach evolved towards a mature style related to Fortuny, Meissonier and F. Domingo, a brilliant painting centred on orientalist and genre themes, marked by the preciosity of his brushstrokes. Antonio Casanova i Estorach is currently represented in the Prado Museum, the National Art Museum of Catalonia, the Municipal Museum and Tortosa Town Hall.